49ers-Raiders : a battle for jobs

UPDATE: As most of you know, the Raiders-49ers game will be blacked out in the Bay Area Saturday night, but will be shown on Ch. 44 at 9 p.m. and probably Ch. 36 at 9 as well. I’ll be listening to the 49ers broadcast on KNBR 1050 and will try to fill in the blanks for that play-by-play. So don’t despair between sfgate.com and KNBR, it will almost be like watching the game. Ah, almost.

Aubrayo’s back. The missing nose tackle apparently signed his franchise-tag offer of $7.003 mil and will be ready to play Thursday night against the Chargers in the exhibition-game finale. For this game against the Raiders in Oakland Saturday night, Franklin will apparently be in attendance but not play. Running backs Frank Gore and Brian Westbrook will get some snaps. Still no word on how long starter Alex Smith will go or who will replace him.

And, there are still position battles to consider. A jumble still exists at strong safety. If you’re at the game, keep your peepers focused on that position and watch how differently Taylor Mays, Reggie Smith and Michael Lewis play it.

Aubrayo Franklin is ready to put on the pads.

For a starting job, the only other question is left defensive end between Isaac Sopoaga and Ray McDonald. McDonald has put on more poundage for the position, and he provides a little more pass rush than Sopoaga. Who starts really doesn’t matter. Both will see significant time, particularly McDonald with his passing down responsibilities.

As for the backups, will the team keep Barry Sims or Alex Boone? Boone struggled a little against the Vikings particularly in pass protection. At this point in his career, Sims might be limited to playing only on the left side. However, that’s a key position and he played it well after Joe Staley got hurt last year.

In the secondary, cornerback Will James is on notice, particularly since he’s on the shelf with an ankle injury. The spry play of rookie Phillip Adams could push James into unemployment. You figure the 49ers will keep Nate Clements, Shawntae Spencer, Tarell Brown and Karl Paymah at corner. That leaves James and Adams presumably fighting for one spot, although the team probably could stick Adams on the practice squad. That’s a risky maneuver since Adams led the team in tackles (four) and passes defensed (three) in the last game and has looked good in practice.

Others who are hanging onto jobs are linebacker Matt Wilhelm, defensive end Khalif Mitchell, safety Curtis Taylor and fullbacks Brit Miller and Moran Norris. I just don’t see them cutting Norris, and Miller might be indispensable because of his special teams play. It’s conceivable they could keep six running backs, which would make room for Miller.

Mitchell will need to do something special in order for the team to keep him as a seventh defensive lineman. At linebacker, it’s possible the team could have five outside linebackers because of Ahmad Brooks’s lacerated kidney, which may keep out of the first game or two. That means Diyral Briggs and Travis La Boy could make it along with Brooks and starters Manny Lawson and Parys Haralson.